Some Kind of Monster
by A Young Volcano
Summary: Sequel to READY AIM FIRE: Phase 2 has begun. Ellie's more lost than ever, and with no ebony-haired, green-eyed hunk there to help her, who can? She can't tell Tony, or Pepper, she can't tell anyone why she's broken. She's some kind of monster...but maybe she can change that.
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything Marvel. 'Nuff said. Enjoy. :)**

* * *

I held the injector in my hand, and bit the inside of my cheek, forcing myself not to yell at the pain.

_Forty-six. _JARVIS droned, and as I injected the next one, he counted that as well. _Forty-seven._ I shook my hand out, and grabbed the next injection from the table next to me, holding it to my arm. _Miss, please may I request just a few hours to calibrate-_

"No." I cut JARVIS off, exclaiming in pain when I hit the tender spot. "Forty-eight." I grabbed the napkin off the table, and cleaned the blood from my arm. "Micro-repeat implanting sequence complete."

_As you wish, miss. I've also prepared a safety briefing for you to entirely ignore._

"Which I will."

_You used to pay attention to the safety briefing._ I sighed.

"Yeah, well, I've realized that's all just bullshit. Now are we doing this or not?" JARVIS didn't reply. "That's what I thought." I stood up, frowning at DUM-E. "DUM-E, there's blood on my mat. Clean it up."

_Miss, may I remind you that you've been awake for nearly 72 hours?_ I shrugged.

"Eh. That's not much of a record, J, I've stayed up longer than that before." I stood up on the podium, facing Dad's suits. "Good evening council, and welcome to the birthing suite. I am proud to announce the imminent arrival of your bouncing, badass baby brother." I looked to the camera. "Start tight and then go wide, stamp date and time." I turned around, facing the pieces laying around. "Mark 42. Autonomous prehensile propulsion suit test. Initialize sequence." The suit started to power up. "JARVIS, drop my needle." I paused a second, and then jutted out my hand, curling the other in a fist. I sighed, when it didn't react, and grunted as I threw my hand out again-still didn't work. "Aw, shit." I held my arm up, and bit it a little-not enough to draw blood, but to get the transmitter working-and then I smacked it.

I paused, but then I stuck my hand out, and the glove finally powered up-it flew at my hand, and sent me stumbling back a second. Then the shoulder, and the arm pieces came right after it, covering up the rest of my arm. I reached my other hand out, and that glove came instantly. "All right, I think we got this-send the rest of them." A leg piece came flying, and I lifted it up just in time, setting it down after it assembled. I turned, though, when the helmet hit the glass casing of one of Dad's suits-another piece bounced off of the armor already on me. "Slow it down, J, it's going a little too fast." Another piece came flying too fast, and I ducked, letting it smash into another case. "Slow it down, JARVIS!" Another piece came flying too fast, and hit a pipe, smashing it open. Then everything just went crazy.

Nothing was going right. I was loosing control of everything, of the suit, of the lab, of the world, I was in that portal again. I was...I was dead again.

_Miss Stark, your father is coming, and I don't believe he'll be pleased to find this mess._ I sucked in a breath.

"Well then cut the crap, J!" The suit finally came together, and I turned, as Dad came in. "Hey Dad." I was missing a piece. My butt was free fallin'-literally. The piece knocked me over, and the suit off of me. I groaned, leaning against the cart. I was feeling it now. I guess 72 hours was a bit of a stretch for me at the moment, especially when I didn't have any Red Bull to give me wings.

Dad sat down next to me, and got J to turn the TV on. "I think you might want to see this."

I didn't think things could get any worse. I was loosing my mind, and no one knew why, I hadn't even told Pepper about what happened. I mean, everyone knew part of the reason, but not even Dad knew what happened to me in that portal. He just knew that my heart stopped for a few seconds. He didn't know about what else I'd lost.

And now, here was this guy, this Mandarin. That symbol, it struck something in me, though, it wasn't just some symbol, it was the symbol of that terrorist group, the one that took Dad in Afghanistan, and that meant we had to stop him.

"Have you-" I turned to look at Dad as he shut off the TV, standing up and holding out a hand to help me up.

"Rhodey's meeting us for lunch, but when we get back, you're getting some sleep. Now let's go."

Sure, I might get some sleep. But I probably wouldn't get much.

* * *

Dad and I stared at the monitor, and I sighed, shaking my head at Rhodey in disapproval. "It tested well with the focus groups, all right?"

"I am Iron Patriot!" Dad said it gruffly, and I bit my lip, setting down my fork to laugh. Rhodey glared at me, and at Dad.

"Rhodey, that sucks so bad, I'm pretty sure Uncle Sam would be booing it right now." Rhodey shook his head, holding up a hand to stop us from ranting.

"Listen guys, War Machine was a little too aggressive, this sends a better message." Dad sighed. I ducked into my food, and let Dad get into the serious stuff.

"What's really going on? With the Mandarin." Dad set his sunglasses down, turning to look Rhodey in the eye. "Seriously, can we talk about this guy?" Rhodey looked hesitant. I watched carefully, as Dad moved in closer, and Rhodey talked in a hushed voice, but I could hear him just fine.

"It's classified information, Tony." He paused, when I raised an eyebrow at him. "Okay, there have been nine bombings. The public only knows about three. But here's the thing, nobody can ID a device. There's no bomb casings."

"You know we can help, Rhodey, just ask."

"I've built a ton of new tech." Dad frowned, turning to me. He only thought that was number fifteen. "I've made a prehensile suit, and we've got bomb disposal, it catches explosions in mid-air."

"When was the last time you got a good night's sleep, Ellie?" I looked up, and between the two of them, shrugging.

"Einstein slept only three hours a year, and look what he did."

"Bug, look at me." I looked Rhodey in the eye. "Your dad's concerned about you, so is Pepper, and so am I." I raised an eyebrow, turning to Dad.

"What? What, Dad, was this your plan? To get me to talk? I don't need to talk-"

"Your dad didn't take you here to talk-" Rhodey looked up, and I turned to the kids, one girl and one boy. The boy stood closer to me, and the girl was holding a drawing out to me.

"Do you mind signing my drawing?" I smiled at her politely.

"Of course not. As long as my dad and Richard don't mind. You don't mind, do you Dick?" Rhodey chuckled as Dad shook his head.

"No, no, go ahead, it's fine." I slid my plate over, and took the drawing and crayon she handed me.

"What's your name, sweetie?" She smiled at me.

"Erin."

"Erin. That's a pretty name." I drew a text bubble next to what was me, holding the missile, and flying it towards the portal. I fought off the shock of it.

"Thank you." I wrote 'Erin! Help me!' in the circle, and Rhodey leaned in to continue the talk with my dad. I turned to the boy, smiling at him as well.

"I loved you in 'A Christmas Story,' by the way." I heard them, though. I heard Rhodey, despite how hard I tried not to.

"Listen, the Pentagon is scared. After New York, aliens...come on. They need to look strong. Stopping the Mandarin is a priority, but it's not..." Rhodey was at a loss for words, or he just didn't want to say them.

"It's not superhero business." Dad provided the answer for him, and Rhodey nodded.

"No, it's not, quite frankly. It's American business."

"I get it, that's why I said I got it." The crayon broke in my hand, and I blinked, staring at the drawing. I exhlaed sharply, rubbing my neck.

"Ellie? You okay?" Rhodey asked me gently. Dad saw it coming.

"I broke the crayon."

"Are you okay, Miss Stark?" Everything was fading, I could barely hear that girl, but the boy I could hear as clear as day as he leaned in and whispered to me.

"How did you get out of the wormhole?" I inhaled sharply, and got up quickly, rushing out of there. I ran into a couple people, apologized as I did, and went right to my suit, but I didn't even get a chance to step into it, I slipped on a step and fell on my butt, just sitting on it.

Dad was right behind me, and lifted me up by my armpits, and leaned in close. "Ellie, breathe. Just focus on that, okay, and let's get you home."

"What's wrong with me? Dad, what's going on, what's wrong with me, is it my heart, my brain, what-" I was in the suit before I even realized it, and JARVIS had already diagnosed me.

_Miss, you're having a severe anxiety attack._ I frowned, my eyes growing wide.

"What?" I stood up, and turned to Rhodey as he approached. "Sorry, Rhodey, sorry. Gotta go."

* * *

I looked Pepper in the eyes, and turned to share a look with Dad as she started to complain. "Oh no, not on my couch. Ellie, get that back down to the garage right now!"

"Chill out, Pepper, it's date night! You two go and eat, I'm fine."

"What is that, like, Mark 15?" I shrugged, after glancing at the number on the arm, as she sat down in a chair.

"Eh. Something like that. Everybody needs a hobby." She started looking through the fanmail-I used to do that, but not anymore.

"And what, you're wearing yours in the living room now?" She had me there. Dad went and grabbed her shoulders.

"I'm just breaking it in. You know, it's always pinching my boobs, it's a complete pain, but at least I don't have junk on the bottom half that gets pinched. Hey, did you see your Christmas present! It was my idea. I know you like bunnies, so." Pepper looked back up at me, annoyance written on her face as clear as day.

"Yes, Ellie, I saw it, but you know your dad goes a little overboard."

"I have some guys coming in to tear down that wall tomorrow, and we'll get that in just fine." Dad said, massaging her shoulders and smirking. Pepper squinted at me.

"Ellie, lift up that face mask, I want to see if you're face is still all sunk in." I shook my head.

"Oh no, it's fine, my face is all flawless, like it was pre-aliens." I said it with a grin, trying to dance around it.

"Well, why don't I run down to the garage, and see if we can get that thing open with a crowbar. How about that, kiddo?" Dad grinned, and went to the stairs. My eyes went wide in a panic.

"Oh no, Dad, don't do that! Radiation leak, it's uh...it's pretty bad." He hissed through his teeth.

"I'll take my chances. C'mon, Pep, let's go!" I sighed, and turned as Dad walked through the garage door, with Pepper right behind him. I grinned sheepishly, as I turned to holograms off and didn't look at them through the monitor.

"Heyyyy guys." Pepper shook her head, and Dad just stared at me. "I'm sorry."

"Have you even eaten anything, Ellie?" I shrugged. Pepper raised an eyebrow at me.

"No, not really." Pepper shot a look at the suit as it came down behind them, and I gestured to the corner, where it went to stand.

"Tony, give me a minute with your daughter." Dad paused. Pepper looked him in the eye. "Tony, please, just give us a minute. You'll have your turn." Dad shook his head, but turned to the stairs, and walked up them slowly. Pepper turned back to me. "Talk to me." I bit my lip. She sighed, looking at me desperately-she missed me like crazy. I knew she did, I missed her, too. I wanted to tell her everything. But it still hurt too much. "Ellie, honey, _talk_ to me."

"I'm a...a monster. I'm a hot mess, Pepper, and I don't know how to fix it. I can't fix it this time. I could do it before, so why can't I do it now?" She sighed, staring at me sadly. I took the headset off, and tossed it aside, sitting down on the step up to the platform. "Nothing has been the same since New York. You experience these things, you don't know how to explain them, and on top of all that I lost the best thing that's ever happened to me." I paused. "I couldn't save him. I saved everyone else, so why the _hell _couldn't I save him? Why couldn't I save the person that was most important to me?" I paused again, longer this time, as I stared at Dad's suits. "I've dealt with Gods. Aliens, other dimensions, and I'm just me, I'm just Ellie. The worst part of it is that Dad never talked about it. I experienced the same thing, and yet he can't even _mention_ New York to me, he's walking around me like I'm a cracked egg and will break any second. Hell, the only reason he hasn't cracked up is because you moved in, because I'm sure if you hadn't, he'd have lost it by now."

"Your father just doesn't know what to do, Ellie. He thinks this is all about Adam, but it's not, and it isn't just about New York." I frowned, turning to look at her again. She knelt down in front of me, taking my hands in hers. "Elizibeth Stark, I've known you since you were eight years old. I may not be Elena, but I know when something is really wrong. You don't have to talk about it, but I'm here when and if you do." I decided to opt for the response not related to what I'd lost in the portal. I opted for the problems in the present.

"I can't sleep. It's been going on for a while, I just haven't told you. I love you guys, I'm lucky you're here, but I can't _sleep." _She knew it was something else. She knew, but she wasn't going to push me. "You guys go to bed, I come down here and I work, because I can fix whatever's wrong with these suits, because New York could happen again, and if there is a next time, I want to be able to protect the two people that I care most about in this world. That's you guys." I gripped her hands tighter, staring at them. "I'll be damned if I can't protect you two, either." Pepper sat down next to me, and I leaned into her, wrapping my arms around her neck, hugging her tightly. My voice grew quiet. "I'm scared. I'm scared every second, of every day, because I've seen things from other dimensions come into our world more than once, and it could happen again. It could happen anywhere, and I don't know if it's going to be Thor, or Loki, or something I've never seen before." She stroked my hair, and kissed the side of my head.

"Well if that does happen, I know you can take care of it. You and your dad, you're a team, and when you two come together you can fix anything you put your minds to." I let out a shaky breath, and she stood up, dragging me with her. "But don't worry about that right now, Ellie. Worry about that when and if it happens. Right now, let's worry about getting some food in you, and getting you to bed. Okay?" I nodded, and let her take me by the shoulders and get me upstairs.

I probably wasn't going to sleep, but I would try. For Dad and Pepper.

* * *

_"Adam!" He was above me, floating there and waving. I waved back, smiling brightly, until I saw that he wasn't. He was waving me away, he was screaming at me, he was telling me not to go any further. I turned around slowly, though, and tried to go back-but when I did, I rammed right into something. I gasped, and looked down, to find the sceptre in my chest. I looked up, and was met with a smirk. A smirk from Loki._

* * *

I shot up out of bed in a cold sweat, only to be face to face with Mark 42.

"POWER DOWN!" I screamed in a panic, and it did, falling apart around me. I breathed heavily, and threw my legs over the side of my bed, staring at the mirrored wall.

I was disheveled. I was drenched in sweat, my hair was a rat's nest, my clothes were hanging off of me. My face looked skeletal, my skin was practically translucent, I couldn't even recognize the face in the mirror. With the transmitters embedded in my skin, but the anger, the fire burning in my eyes, I didn't know whether I wanted to be me, the true me, or I wanted to be what the world wanted me to be-a superhero.

I couldn't stare at that mirror anymore. I couldn't _stand_ that mirror. I turned to my bedside table, and found the ring box there-I couldn't stand looking at that, either. So I got up, grabbed that box, and chucked it at the mirror as hard as I could-it shattered into a million pieces. Then I went to go down to the garage, but Pepper emerged from hers and Dad's bedroom, and frowned at me.

"Ellie? What happened, I heard something break." She was drowsy-good. I could send her right back to bed.

"Nothing, Pepper, you probably had a bad dream. Go back to bed, I just got up because I was thirsty." Pepper shut the door behind her-I didn't have to tell her twice. I made it down to the garage, and I didn't see him until he spoke up, as I was getting Mark 42 back out.

"Didn't like what you saw in that mirror, huh, princess?" I turned around fast, my eyes growing wide being caught in the act. He stood up from his seat on the table, and crossed his arms over his chest, leaning on it instead. "I can't sleep, either, you know. All I can think about is that you were dead. You were dead in the air, and I couldn't even save you."

"I didn't want to be saved, Dad. You can't blame yourself for my actions."

"Why can't I? You blame yourself for Adam's." I shook my head, running a hand through my hair.

"Yeah, but he's actually _dead_. He's gone for good. Me, I didn't leave, I'm still here." I paused. "Why am I here? Why didn't I die in that portal, why didn't I die on that Hellicarrier, what did I do to deserve to be here? Why did Adam have to leave, while I had to stay, Dad?" He sighed.

"You can't put that on yourself, Ellie-"

"I can't help how I feel, and I feel like I could have done more, I could have fought, _I_ could have taken that stab instead of him-" Dad stood up, grabbing me by the arms, almost like he was going to shake me.

"Don't talk like that, Elizibeth. Don't blame yourself for something that couldn't have been stopped." I clenched my fists, as Dad paused. "Do you have any idea how long I've done that? How long I've blamed myself for what happened to Elena?" My fists unclenched. I hadn't even thought about that. "I could have stopped that, but then what would have happened to me when all of this happened? When I would've been taken, I wouldn't have had anything to fight for. I'd have had Pepper, Rhodey, and Happy, but I wouldn't have you to worry about. I wouldn't be the man I am today without that plane crash happening, and I know this is gonna hurt to hear, but I'm a little glad that happened. Because I got you out of it." I smiled at him as best as I could-it was the best smile I'd mustered since Adam died, and Dad smiled right back at me, reveling in the progress he'd just made. He hugged me close, letting out a breath he'd been holding. "I never thought I'd see that smile again."

"Of course you'd see that smile again, you and I just didn't know when." He pulled away, and held me there by the shoulders. He paused briefly, before he spoke up again.

"You still can't shake that feeling, though, can you?" I frowned. "When you came to, after you fell out of that portal, you hugged me. But then you cried, Ellie. You didn't even shed a tear, you just _cried, _and you still can't shake that feeling you had when you did. Can you?" I paused, and pushed his hands off my shoulders, sitting down. I was still exhausted, and that pain I felt when I fell out of that portal was still in my chest. I'd wanted to die...maybe I still did.

"I'm trying. I'm trying, Dad, I promise I am, but I don't know how." He nodded, and searched my face.

"You'll be okay again, bug. Just give it time." He kissed the top of my head, and then turned to the stairs, going back up to bed.

The thing was, I'd given myself six months, but it still hurt just as much as it did. At this rate, I thought I'd never be fixed, that I'd remain this way until the day I ended it all-I'd be a monster forevermore.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks to the **_guest**, **_**and**_ Wilhelm Wigworthy_** for the reviews! But I might just have to reply to one...**

_acompletenerd**: **_**As I described in ****Ready Aim Fire, Ellie lost her baby. She ain't preggers right now, hun. Nor may she never be. I'm not sure yet. And I'm not so sure about Cap yet, we'll see. I'm not confirming anything, but they are a definite possibility. I'm glad you like Ellie, and man, you people with catching up to read the next fic! CRAZY! I could never stay awake long enough to do that! I read my fics at night, before I go to bed, and I can't imagine doing that in one go! I'm glad you understand why I killed Adam. It had to be done, sadly. But Ellie? In Thor 2? The closest you guys are going to get is a mere mention of what happened, but you'll see why. Just be patient. And I am not going to confirm anything.**

**ENOUGH SAID! ON WITH THE FIC!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Iron Man/Tony Stark, Pepper Potts, or anyone else. Only the characters that I've created.**

* * *

I turned, as Dad walked through the door, tossing me my sneakers. I caught them, and frowned at him as he held open my jacket as well.

"Where are we going?"

"Hospital." My eyes went wide. "It's Happy. Get your shoes on, we gotta go." I nodded, and slipped on my sneakers quickly, letting him put my jacket on me. Dad wrapped an arm around my shoulders, leading me to the car.

"What happened?"

"Mandarin attack at the Chinese Theater. Happy had told me he was going to spy on someone working with Aldrich Killian, but I didn't think he'd actually do it." I frowned.

"Aldrich Killian? What, that guy from AIM Pepper had a meeting with?" Dad nodded, letting go of me as we got out the front door to his car. "Do you think-"

"We can discuss that later, now let's go."

* * *

Dad grabbed a hold of me as we headed out the front doors, with the paparazzi swarming at the main entrance. They immediatley attacked as soon as we got out, like a swarm of bees.

"Mister Stark!" Dad held up a hand, trying to get past them, and held me closer. I shoved my hands in my pockets, with my hood pulled up to block my face as much as possible. He stared at a blonde, but got past them to the car, letting go of me. Reporters shouted in my ears, but I only heard one, and he was interrogating Dad.

"Hey Mister Stark, when is somebody gonna kill this guy?" Dad's head shot up, but I looked him in the eyes, slowly shaking my own head.

"My dad and I have no comments on the matter, now could you please back away from the car? We've got somewhere to be."

"Miss Stark, we haven't heard from you since before the attack during the Stark Expo last year. Can you tell us what happened that made you disappear from the public this long?" Dad took over, turning to the reporter that'd confronted him, instead of the one that confronted me.

"Is that what you want?" He didn't speak, for a pretty long time. I stared at the back of his head, watching him carefully. "Here's a little holiday greeting I've been wanting to send to the Mandarin. I just didn't know how to phrase it until now. My name is Tony Stark and I'm not afraid of you, I know you're a coward. So I've just decided that you just died, pal."

"Dad, that's enough." He didn't even turn to look at me. The reporters did, though.

"Miss Stark, do you believe that the Mandarin shouldn't be punished for what he did?" A couple reporters shoved microphones in my face, and I pushed some away, speaking to the reporter I heard the loudest.

"Of course not. I just don't want to see the people I care about caught in the crossfire, and besides, this isn't superhero business. This is a job for the Pentagon."

"Screw the Pentagon, El, I'm gonna come go and get that body!" I turned back to Dad, keeping my face stoic, showing no emotion. "There's no politics here, just some good, old-fashioned revenge. There's no Pentagon, it's just me and him, and on the off chance he's a man, here's our address." My eyes went wide, but I forced them back to normal size. "10880 Malibu Point, 90265. We'll leave the door unlocked." He grabbed the reporter's phone. "That's what you wanted, right?" He chucked the phone at a column-I had to duck so that it wouldn't hit me. He turned back to the reporter, opening up his door, as I opened mine. "Bill me." He climbed into the car as I did, and as soon as the doors were shut and he'd driven away, I confronted him.

"What the hell was that? I get you didn't think about me, Dad, but Pepper lives there too, and now you've not only put us in danger, you've put the best woman on this planet in danger, too." He turned to glance at me for a second, and then he turned back to the road.

"I'll protect her, and you, because that's what I do. I protect people, Ellie, and so do you. Now are you with me or not?" I hesitated, but sighed, muttering my next words.

"For Happy." Dad smiled, taking my hand and holding it tight, shaking our fists in the air.

"For Happy."

* * *

_I've compiled a Mandarin database for you both, drawn from SHIELD, FBI and CIA intercepts._ I grabbed the information I'd dug up, putting it in the center, expanding it across the room. _Initiating virtual crime scene reconstruction._ I expanded the database JARVIS had gathered as well, and sat down as Dad stood up.

"Okay, let's see what we got here." He stood up on the platform, looking over what was in front of him.

"The name was an ancient Chinese war mantle meaning 'advisor to the king.'" I provided, as Dad continued to look everything over, trying to find whatever the hell he was looking for.

"South American insurgency tactics. Talks like a Baptist preacher." I frowned, sitting forward.

"There's a lot of pageantry here, don't you think? A lot of theater. Close." I pulled down the database, and stood up, joining Dad on the platform and looked around closely.

_The heat from the blast was in excess of 3,000 degrees Celsius. Any subjects within 12.5 yards were vaporized instantly._ Dad stared at the victims across the room, while I stared at Happy, kneeling next to him. He was looking at something when it happened, he had a hand out, reaching for it.

"No bomb parts found within a 3-mile radius of the Chinese Theatre?" Dad asked J, as the people disappeared, and shadows were left.

_No, sir. _Dad paused, and turned to where I was, looking where I, and Happy were.

"Dog tags. J, were there any military victims?" I asked as I finally stood up, after figuring out what they were.

_Not according to pulic record, miss._ I nodded.

"All right, then bring up the thermogenic signatures again, and Dad, get out of the way." I sat down on the tool box in the center of the platform, and he climbed up with me. "J, factor in 3,000 degrees." I called, watching as the reconstruction was replaced with a map of the US, and bars representing the heat signature of every known bombing that has occured in the last 12 months flew up.

_The Oracle cloud has completed analysis. Accessing satallites and plotting the last 12 months of thermogenic occurences now. _I looked around the the information of each one, and nodded.

"Okay, now take away everywhere that there's been a Mandarin attack." Plenty of places disappeared. I looked around, and mentally crossed off some places.

"Cali?" I shook my head in response to Dad's question. "Nope. Missouri?"

"Nope." We said it both at the same time, and shared a smirk after we spotted the same one. I pointed at it. "J, are you sure Tennessee _isn't_ one of his?" The info for it came up, and it was clearly one of his, but apparently the government hadn't classified it as his doing.

_It predates any known Mandarin attack. The incident was the use of a bomb to assist a suicide._

"Bring her around." Dad ordered, and JARVIS brought it around for us to look at, clearing every other occurence off the board.

_The heat signature is remarkably similar. 3,000 degrees Celsius. _

"That's two military guys." Dad turned to me as I said that, and I looked back at him.

"Ever been to Tennessee, El?" I puckered my lip, shaking my head.

"I've driven through it, but I've never really been." Dad nodded.

"Well you're about to." He announced, stepping down from the tool box.

_Creating a flight plan for Tennessee._ JARVIS droned, and I smirked, clearing the hologram. A bell rang right after. I moaned, staring up at the ceiling.

"Are we still at ding-dong? We're supposed to be on total security lockdown, JARVIS, Dad just threatened a terrorist!"

"Hey, don't put this one on me, kid, you didn't even _try_ to stop me!" I turned to glare at him, and he frowned. "Wait, you did?"

"Yeah, I did. But you were too busy threatening to realize." He smiled sheepishly, and headed to the stairs. I jumped down from the tool box, and followed him. "Who is that, anyway?"

"Dunno. Guess we're gonna find out, though."

_Miss, there's only so much I can do when your father gives the world's press your home address._ I rolled my eyes, pointing a finger.

"No excuses, J!" I yelled, and followed Dad up the stairs.

"Right there is fine." He told the woman as she came in, and she stopped in the middle of the entryway. I peeked around the corner, frowning at her. Brunette, with brown eyes, strong jaw, hair a little past her shoulders. She looked about Dad's age. "You're not the Mandarin. Are you?"

"Are you?" I asked, appearing from around the corner. The woman smirked, looking Dad up and down.

"You don't remember." She chuckled. "Why am I not surprised?"

"Don't take it personally, I don't even remember what I had for breakfast this morning."

_Gluten-free waffles, sir._ JARVIS replied. I scrunched my nose, sticking out my tongue. That stuff Pepper made him eat was gross, but luckily, she didn't force it on me.

"That's right." Dad nodded.

"Okay, look, I need to be alone with you, and someplace not...here. It's urgent." Her eyes darted to me, and then back at Dad. He frowned at her, and squinted.

"Normally, I'd go for that, but I'm in a committed relationship with her-" He pointed at me as he walked past, and I smiled politely, waving. Pepper dropped luggage from the second floor, three dufels. "And her." Dad smirked, and I stepped away from the stairway to the garage.

"Tony, is somebody there?" Pepper called.

"Yeah, it's Maya Hansen." I nodded now, understanding who it was. An old college friend of Dad's, from the pre-me days. "Old botanist pal that I used to know, barely." I approached them now, and heard Dad speaking to her in a hushed tone, while Pepper made her way down the stairs. "Please tell me there isn't a twelve-year-old kid waiting in the car that I've never met."

"He's thirteen." Dad shuddered. "Besides, it wouldn't be the first time, would it?" She turned to me, smiling. "You must be Ellie." She held out a hand, and I took it, shaking it politely. "I knew your mother, too, I met her when she came to visit Tony a couple times. She was great." I nodded, smiling.

"Thanks. But you're not serious, are you?" She laughed, shaking her head. "Good. The house is mine then." I smirked, and she laughed further.

"No, but I need your dad's help. Yours, too, if you're up for it." I nodded, and she looked between me and Dad.

"But what for, why now?" Dad asked.

"Because I read the papers, and frankly? I don't think you'll last the week." Dad shook his head.

"I'll be fine." She raised an eyebrow. Pepper approached, though.

"I'm sorry, with Happy in the hospital, I didn't think we'd be expecting any guests." Pepper shot Dad a look, and turned back to Maya, smiling politely.

"We weren't." Dad said, trying to defend himself.

"And old girlfriends." Pepper fought back.

"She's not, really." Dad said, looking at Pepper, and Maya went with it.

"No, not really, I-it was just one night." I bit my lip, clearing my throat to get their attention.

"Child in the room. Could you _not?" _Dad smirked.

"It was a great night." I shuddered, shaking my head and covering my ears.

"Ugggggh. Pepper, make him stooooop." Pepper turned to Dad.

"That's how you did it, isn't it?" I threw my hands up in defeat. Pepper patted my shoulder. "Sorry, sweetie."

"Yep." Dad replied, but that cheeky smirk never left his face.

"Well, you know, you saved yourself a world of pain. Trust me." Pepper said to Maya, and I frowned, pouting at her. "And double the trouble."

"Hey!" Dad and I both argued at the same time. "At least I have the decency to give people their privacy!" I defended myself, but Dad turned to me, frowning.

"I give you your privacy." I raised an eyebrow.

"Dad, you know more about my personal life than JARVIS does, and he knows _plenty._" Dad paused, and nodded.

"We're leaving town, all three of us. Ellie, you're staying in DC because I know you don't want to be in the city." I gave Pepper a pouty look.

"Pepper, no, don't do this to me! Gramps isn't gonna stop bugging me about SHIELD, and Aunt Sara is gonna shove the Christmas ham down my throat!"

"Pepper, we've been through this, I'm not going anywhere, and neither is my daughter. She's twenty years old, she can make her own decisions." Dad argued in favor of me, turning to face her, but then she got this look in her eye that said she was going to murder him. I grabbed Maya by the arm, pulling her back a step.

"She's a mess right now, Tony, she needs to have decisions made _for_ her. She can barely get up in the morning, let alone make a life or death decision, and since you'd opt for death, I already called Sarah. She's making up a room as we speak."

"That's a great idea! Let's go." Maya said, going to grab our bags.

"No, it's not, don't touch our bags. Pepper, that's a terrible idea, she's gonna be suffocated in London, she'll probably go back a step, and I just got her to start talking about," he paused, as he realized his mistake, "I mean, _you _just got her to-" Pepper raised a hand, cutting Dad off.

"Don't even try to argue with me. We are going, and that's final." I stepped forward.

"Hello, capable human being here, completely conscious of the fact that I'm in the room! Does anyone even _care_ that I'm an adult, and can make my own decisions?" I practically yelled, and they both turned to me, yelling at me in sync.

"No!" They turned back to each other, and started arguing again. "I'm not making my daughter leave if she doesn't want to. She's opening up, and I'm not gonna make a drastic change in her life when she's finally starting to move on!"

"Do you think that I _want_ to do this? I don't want to do this to her, Tony, but you've given me no choice, since you decided to threaten a terrorist, and give him our address!"

"Guys." I frowned, turning to Maya, and my eyes went wide when I saw the television screen.

"GET OUT! EVERYBODY OUTSIDE, NOW!" I shoved Maya towards the door, and Dad pushed Pepper. I shoved him towards it as well, though, and Dad yelled to duck, so I did-but I made sure he had the suit, to get the other two women outside. Dad went to get me, but I stopped him. "GET THEM OUT! DON'T WORRY ABOUT ME, JUST GET THEM OUT!" He went and did that, and I covered my head with my arms, rolling away from the ceiling that was about to cave in, and curling in a ball as the hellicopters fired at us again. I flew back into the couch, and rolled off of it, groaning as I landed on my stomach. There was gonna be some wicked bruising after this. I stood up, making sure my dad was out, and held out my hand, getting the suit off and back to me. But I slipped, as another missile was fired, and knocked the building completely off the cliff-it was gonna fall, and soon. So I grabbed a sturdy part of the house, and held on for dear life. I could hear Dad yelling for me.

"ELLIE, LET GO, YOU'LL BE FINE! JUST LET GO!" I hesitated, but I let go-the suit soon followed, and I managed to not end up in the water as I climbed back up. I fired a repulsor blast at a hellicopter, and sent it spiraling down. "That's one." But then I was shot at again for it, _and_ I almost lost power.

"JARVIS, where the hell is my flight power?"

_This is a prototype, miss. _I rolled my eyes, and tried to climb up the floor as the structure split in half-the half that was on the cliff, and the half that was hanging off of it. I grabbed on to the half hanging off as it started to fall, and held on, trying to shoot another missile, but it was offline. I turned, as the piano started to fall, and my eyes went wide. If the piano was going to go down, it was gonna go down swinging.

I let go, and fired my repulsors at it, sending it flying at another chopper, sending that one down as well. "That's two." I stood up again, and looked up, finding another one.

_Miss, the suit is not combat ready._ I groaned, but took off to the left, towards the one closest to the house, and pulled the missile out of the suit. I chucked it out the window, and fired a repulsor, blasting another chopper to pieces. "That's three." But it came flying at the house. I grimaced. "Oh." I went to take off, but it flew right into the house, ripping it to shreds. I almost managed to grab on to the half on the cliff, but my grip slipped, and I fell down onto the half hanging off. I grabbed on, though, but saw DUM-E had fallen apart.

My childhood house, the house I'd grown up in, it was being blown to pieces. And I didn't think I could save it. The original suits, they blew up one by one, and DUM-E fell with the half hanging off the cliff, right into the ocean, and I was about to follow.

It happened too fast, I didn't have any time to try and save myself, but I could hear Dad and Pepper yelling for me. Dad would've dove in after me if it wasn't for her stopping him. I fell right into the ocean, sinking along with the rest of the house. I was dragged down by wiring, and soon enough, I was going to be buried beneath the rubble. I eventually managed to remove the wire from around my neck, and get myself free of that, but the rubble was still sinking, and there was no stopping that from keeping me down. I tried to reach out, and break free, but I was loosing air fast. It was New York all over again-I was dead again. But this time, I heard JARVIS say something to me.

_Miss, take a deep breath._


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys! How goes it? It's going pretty well with me. Not failing anything at school, so, yeah. Pretty good.**

**So, I saw The Amazing Spider-Man 2 last night. Not gonna say anything, but that movie DID break my heart at least three times. But overall, it was fantastic, the CGI was GREAT, and I loved what they did with two out of the 3 big baddies. The last one to show up pissed me off, but enough about Spidey! Let's talk Ellie, let's talk Avengers.**

**I seriously need that Guardians of the Galaxy movie. Like, now. THAT SONG IS STUCK IN MY HEAD AND I NEED IT GONE. ALONG WITH MY NEEED. But also...did anyone else know that they're making another Iron Man movie after the Avengers 2? BECAUSE I DIDN'T. AND I DIDN'T KNOW THEY WERE MAKING DOCTOR STRANGE, _AND_ BLACK PANTHER MOVIES. MY LIFE ROCKS. THE NEXT TWO YEARS ARE GONNA BE HELLA RAD. BOO YAH!**

**I would also like to say a thank you to **_acompletenerd_** for reviewing. Gurl, you rock. And I hope you, and everyone else, enjoys this chapter. Because I'm introducing a freaking CUTIE!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything Marvel.**

* * *

_Miss?_

_Miss!_ The alarm started blaring, and I grumbled.

"J, kill the alarm, I got it. I'm up."

_Miss, that's the emergency alert triggered by the power dropping below 5%._ I sighed, and my eyes went wide, as I got a glimpse around.

"Oh." The alarms intensified, going into a frenzy, and I started screaming. The suit started falling-it started falling right into a road, with a deer, and a truck, and it wasn't looking good at all. I bounced off the road, and started rolling into trees, until I landed face-first in the snow. I managed to flip onto my back, and let out a breath, closing my eyes for just a second. I pulled the face plate off, and opened my eyes back up.

"It's snowing? What, where are we, upstate?"

_We are five miles outside Rose Hill, Tennessee._ My eyes went wide again.

"WHAT? WHY! JARVIS, THIS WASN'T MY IDEA, DAD'S GONNA BE LOOSING HIS FUCKING MIND THINKING I'M DEAD, AND YOU DRAG ME TO SOME _HICK TOWN _IN FUCKING _TENNESSEE?"_

_I prepared a flight plan, this was the location._

"WHO ASKED YOU? OPEN THE DAMN SUIT!"

_I-I think I may be malfunctioning, miss._

"Open the suit, JARVIS." I was getting serious. I wasn't yelling anymore, but I was using a firm voice, _and _his full name. JARVIS knew he was going to get it later on. The suit opened, and I sat up, zipping my hoodie up all the way as I was thrust into the cold, putting my hood up as well. "Shit, that's brisk. I think I may just cuddle back up-"

_I actually think I need to sleep now, miss._ The armor powered down. My eyes went wide.

"J." I didn't hear a reply. I didn't hear a single reply. My voice grew more soft, more quiet. "J?" Still nothing. I crossed my arms, trying to preserve any heat I had left. It felt like Adam all over again. "Don't leave me, J."

But it was too late. He was gone, now, too. And I was alone again.

* * *

I dragged that suit for a while, until I got to a little pit stop, and a phone booth. I stole a poncho off the Native American statue there, and covered myself up, digging the money out of my pocket that I'd used at the hospital.

"Dad, Pepper, it's me. I know I've got a lot of apologies to make, and not a lot of time, so first off...I'm sorry I've been disregarding you guys. I've pushed you guys away, and I know it hurts, but I did it because I didn't know what else to do. I'm sorry I made you guys worry about me this much. I'm a grown woman, and I should be able to take care of myself, and I'm sorry. I'm also sorry in advance, because I can't come home yet. I need to find this guy, because JARVIS is making me, and I'd rather I be doing this instead of you, Dad. You guys just have to stay safe, and that's all I know. Also, I just stole a poncho from a wooden Native. It's fucking _cold_ in Tennessee!"

* * *

I kicked open the garage door, and grunted, shoving the suit inside. I took off the poncho, and set it aside, checking to make sure no one was watching before I went inside, and shut the door behind me.

I managed to get the suit up, and sat it on the couch, panting as I sat down next to it. I turned, only to come face to face with the helmet. "Let's get you comfy." I lifted the arm up onto the armrest, and turned the helmet so it was facing straight ahead, and then sat back again, leaning on it's shoulder. "There. You happy now?"

I found a pair of pliers and bowl, and sat down at the work table, getting the first transmitter out of my arm.

"Freeze!" I looked up, and set the pliers down, looking the little boy in the eye. He was holding a potato launcher, and had a fierce look in his blue eyes. "Don't move." I held up my hands in defense.

"You got me, kid." I paused. "Nice potato gun." I paused again, when he didn't say anything. "It's a little long, though, so between that and the wide gauge it's gonna diminish your FPS." He looked up, and fired it at a mason jar, shattering it to pieces. I stared at the pieces, and then put my hands down, when he nodded to the gun. "And now you're out of ammo."

"What's that thing you pulled out of your arm?" I turned to look at the transmitter, and then backed up so he could see the suit, pointing a light at it. The kid gasped, and dropped his gun, smiling big at it.

"Oh my God!" He moved forward, after glancing at me. "That..." He trailed off, at a loss for words, and I just watched him. "That's...Is that Iron Man?"

"Well, if you want to get technical, my dad's Iron Man. I like to call myself Iron Maiden."

"Technically, Iron Maiden, you're dead." He walked over, and handed me a newspaper, getting a closer look at the suit. I opened up the newspaper, and sighed. My face was planted across it, announcing me dead. Great.

"Valid point, little man." The kid climbed onto the couch, staring at the suit intently.

"What happened to him?" He asked, in reference to the suit.

"Life. I help my dad build him and take care of him. I'll fix him." I tossed the paper aside, as the kid turned the suit's helmet to face him, and then the kid looked at me. I stood up, sick of the sitting. I was so _sick_ of sitting around.

"Like a mechanic?" I'd never considered myself to be a mechanic, simply a scientist, but...I liked it. I nodded slowly.

"Yeah." I crossed my arms over my chest, leaning on the car in that garage, nodding again. The kid hummed.

"If I was building Iron Man and War Machine-" I cut him off, correcting him.

"It's Iron Patriot now."

"That's way cooler!" I shook my head, scrunching my nose up at the idea.

"No. It's not." He shrugged.

"Anyways...I would have added in the, um, the retro..." He gestured to the armor, the outside armor, and I nodded, frowning in concentration.

"The retro-reflective panels." He nodded, turning to look at me again.

"To make him stealth mode." I raised an eyebrow, smiling.

"You want a stealth mode?" The kid grinned at me in excitement at the idea.

"Cool, right?" I nodded, smiling even further.

"I thought about it, brought it up to my dad, but he shut me down. Maybe he'll change his mind." The kid looked down, and grabbed a finger, pulling it right off. _"That's _not a good idea, though."

"Oops." I was about to loose it on the kid, but I stopped, and sighed.

"Be careful with him, he's not completely indestructible." I knelt in front of the kid, holding out a hand. "Can I have that finger back?" He put it in my hand, and I put it in my pocket, then I looked him in the eye. "He isn't a toy. You get that, right?" He nodded.

"I'm sorry." He looked a little mad at himself for doing it, so I let him off the hook-but just this once.

"It's fine. I can fix it. Just don't do it again, okay?"

"Uh-huh." I stood back up, leaning on the post holding the roof up.

"Who's home, anyway?" I asked, staring at him as he stared at the suit.

"Mom already left for the diner, and Dad went to get some scratchers at 7-11. I guess he won, because that was six years ago." I didn't say anything. "What about your parents?"

"Well, my dad's back in California, and he thinks I'm dead." I nodded to the newspaper. "And Mom? Mom left when I was eight. Plane crash. So...I guess I beat you this time, kid, now here's what I need from you." He squinted his eyes at me, looking curious. "I need a laptop, a digital watch, a cellphone, the pneumatic actuator from your bazooka, a map of town, a big spring, and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich."

"What's in it for me?" I puckered my lip, but I could see what he was doing-he did it to the kids that picked on him at school, too. So I shrugged.

"Salvation. What's his name?" The kid frowned.

"Who?"

"The kid that bullies you at school. What's his name?" He lost the confidence, the bravery, and now he looked like a normal kid. He looked nervous and exposed.

"How'd you know that?" I paused.

"I used the same trick with my dad and his assistant. They thought I just had a wicked attitude." I went over to the suit, pulling out the perfect bully shield. "I made tons of these things when I was your age to protect myself. Now you can, too." I knelt down in front of him, holding it out for him to see. "This is a very powerful weapon. Point it away from your face, press the button on top, it'll get you kicked out of as many schools as I was kicked out of. But it discourages bullying, and you'll gain a reputation, and the bullies will hear all about it. It's not lethal, though, I promise, this'll just cover your ass. Deal?" I held it away, as he reached for it, looking him in the eye with a brow raised. "What do you say, deal?"

"Deal." He answered, staring at it with greedy little eyes. I loved that look-the look kids get when they see something totally awesome.

"Deal?" I put the weapon in his hand, and let him get a look at it, watching him carefully. "What's your name?"

"Harley. And you're..."

"The Mechanic." He looked up, and met my eyes, but I smiled at him. "Ellie." I paused. "Now, you know what keeps going through my head, Harley? 'Where's my sandwich?'"

* * *

I walked down the street with Harley, headed towards the scene of the first attack. "The sandwich was fair, the spring was a bit rusty, the rest of the materials I'll deal with. By the way, when you said your sister had a watch," I rolled my sleeve up, shoving the watch in his face, "I was kinda hoping for something a little more grown up than that." He smirked, and I shook my head. "I never even _liked_ Dora. I was a Pokemon master." He laughed.

"She's six! Anyway, it's a limited edition." We turned the corner, and I could see it now. "When can we talk about New York?"

"Maybe never. Relax about it." I tried to brush him off, but he came right back. Little brat.

"What about the Avengers? Can we talk about them?" I shrugged, as he inched closer, getting more and more curious. When he mentioned the Avengers, I thought about Steve, about where he was right now. Germany. Austria, Spain, Finland, I had no clue where he was, but I actually hoped I'd talk to him soon. I missed the old fart.

"I don't know, later. Hey, could you give me some space?" I kinda pushed him, and he backed off. I stopped in my tracks, but Harley kept going, sitting down amongst the things people had left there. Shadows of people were on the walls, candles were scattered all over the place, and flowers, mementos of the people that were killed were everywhere. "What's the official story here? What happened?" I asked, approaching slowly.

"I guess this guy named Chad Davis used to live around here, he won a bunch of medals in the army, and one day, folks said he went crazy, and made, you know, a bomb. Then he blew himself up." I went forward, and examined a shadow-this guy wasn't running. He stood there, either because of shock, he didn't know what was going on, or he just took it.

"Six people died, right?" I asked, looking around, but only finding five shadows.

"Yeah." I turned to look him in the eye, frowning.

"Including Chad Davis?"

"Yeah yeah." Harley nodded. I paused, rounding back to sit next to Harley.

"Yeah, that doesn't make sense." Harley looked back up at me, and I nodded to the shadows. "Think about it." I pointed at the shadows, looking over them. "Six dead, but only five shadows."

"Yeah." He didn't seem too interested in that. "People said these shadows are like the marks of souls going to heaven. Except the bomb guy, he went to hell on account of he didn't get a shadow. That's why there's only five."

"I like that theory, but Harley? I don't think he set off a bomb. I don't think he did this. Do you?" Harley shrugged, as I turned to look at him.

"It's what everyone says." I nodded, turning back to the shadows. "You know what this crater reminds me of?" He was inching towards it again. If he kept this up, I was gonna _really_ break down.

"No idea. I'm not...I don't care."

"That giant wormhole in, um, in New York!" My heart was picking up, pounding in my ears, it was all I could hear, and I felt like I couldn't breath. My lungs weren't working like lungs. "Does it remind you?"

"_That _is manipulative, and I don't wanna talk about it." I stood up, and shoved my hands in my pockets, trying to catch my breath.

"Are they coming back? The aliens?"

"Maybe. Can you stop?" I practically scolded him, trying to walk around, and calm myself down. "I have an anxiety thing, remember? I told you this."

"Does this subject make you edgy? Am I putting you on edge?" I groaned, and dropped back down, putting my head between my knees when I started to feel nauseous.

"Yeah, a little bit. Can I catch my breath?" But he wouldn't stop, he just kept going, and _he_ even started to panic.

"Are there bad guys in Rose Hill? Do you need a bucket to puke into?" I looked up, shooting him a scowl.

"Harley, stop."

"Do you have medication?" I shook my head. "Should you?"

"Probably." I replied, and it got even worse. I felt like screaming my head off.

"Do you have PTSD?" I paused, thinking it over, but then shook my head once.

"I don't think so."

"Are you going completely mental?" I shook my head, laughing bitterly.

"Oh no, you have no idea what going mental _is _for me."

"I can stop, so you don't go mental. Do you want me to stop?" I nodded.

"Yeah. Yeah, shut up, Harley." I picked up some snow, and covered up my face with it, hoping to cool myself off. But it just wouldn't stop. The memories were gonna start flashing soon. "Great. You did it now, didn't you?" I stood up, and took off, trying to run it off, run away from it all, but I couldn't run. I could never run from this, this feeling, this memory. I'd be dying, over and over again, for the rest of my life.

"Hey, wait up! What did I say?" I rammed into a wall, though, and slid down it, pulling my knees up to my forehead, shuddering and trying to catch my breath. "What the hell was that?" I shoved snow in my face again, and sighed, finally being able to catch my breath. I gathered the snow in a ball, and chucked it at Harley's face.

"Your fault. You spazzed me out." Harley smiled a little, and I sighed, getting back up. "Okay, back to business. The guy who died. Relatives? Mom? Missus Davis, where is she?" Harley rubbed his nose, as it started to drip because of the cold. I dug some tissues out of my pocket, handing them to him.

"Where she always is." He took the tissues, cleaning off his nose. I nodded.

"Awesome." I stood up straight, getting off the wall. "Point me in the right direction."


	4. Chapter 4

**Sooo...it's been two weeks. Even more than that, actually. How about an update? ;)**

**Thanks to those that reviewed! I'm very grateful for the feedback. This chapter is full of action, so be prepared! ON WITH THE CHAPTER!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything Marvel. Don't shoot me.**

* * *

I approached the bar, and wrapped the scarf around my neck, bracing myself against the cold. I bumped into someone, since I was barely looking. "Oh, I'm sorry." I looked down, and found the lady's glove, holding it out. "Is this-"

"Thank you." I smiled politely at her, ignorning the scar on her face.

"Nice haircut. It suits you." I complemented her, and she smirked, pointing at my wrist.

"Nice watch. Dad pick it out?" I looked down, and laughed, nodding.

"No, actually. But it's a limited edition."

"Oh, I don't doubt it." She backed up smirking, and I did as well, headed back to the bar. "Have a good evening."

"You too." I headed into the bar, and looked around carefully, trying to pinpoint the woman I was looking for. I walked in slowly, and spotted the gun on the sheriff's hip.

I smiled politely at people, excused myself, got a couple stares from some guys, but then I found Mrs. Davis. She was sat at a table, playing with her son's dog tags. I grabbed a drink, and set it down slowly, getting her attention. "Missus Davis?" She looked up, and I nodded to the chair in front of me. "May I join you?" She shrugged.

"Free country, sweetheart." I pulled out the chair and sat down, slipping out of the jacket I'd bummed from Harley.

"Sure is." She leaned off the table, and revealed a file she'd been laying on.

"All right. Where would you like to start?" I frowned. She was expecting someone, someone who knew something about Chad. But what was it, _who_ was it?

"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for your loss." I paused, searching her face for some sign of defense. "I wanted to know what you think happened." She started getting nervous.

"Look, I brought your file, so take it and go." I frowned, but looked over it. CONFIDENTIAL was written in bold across the front, his name was printed on it, and some number that was supposed to be the assignment was written underneath his name. "Whatever was in here, he wanted no part of it." I reached forward, and uncrossed my legs, moving forward on the chair to get a look at it. I opened it up, and found pictures of him in uniform.

"Clearly, you're waiting for someone else." I said, looking back up at her. "Supposed to meet someone here?" Her eyes darted to the file, and then back up at me.

"Yeah." I lifted up the pictures, set them aside, and found MIA written on the paper under the pictures. Faces of some men were glued to the paper, and one of them was the guy that died at the Chinese Theater. I closed the file, and leaned forward, taking the woman's hands in my own.

"Missus Davis, your son didn't kill himself. I can guarantee you that he didn't kill anyone. Someone used him." She looked confused now, and frowned.

"What?" I nodded, tried to get her to realize what I was saying.

"He was used as a weapon." She pulled the file away, and took her hands away, pointing at me.

"You're not the one that called me after all, are you?" Her lip started to quiver. Someone slammed a badge on the table, and we both looked up-the girl outside the bar had come back in.

"Actually, I am." She turned back to me, smiled, and slammed me on the table, putting cuffs on me. The sheriff started to argue. I grabbed the dog tags as I was slammed next to them, holding them tight in my hand, shoving them into my shirt, and they got stuck in my bra.

"What's all this about? What the hell is going on here?"

"It's called an arrest." The lady grunted, grabbing my other hand, and cuffing that one. She threw me down onto the floor, and I groaned-the bruises weren't getting any better. "Sheriff, is it?" I rolled over and sat up, sitting against the wall.

"Yes ma'am, it is. And you are?" She held up her badge.

"Homeland Security. We good here?" The sheriff raised an eyebrow.

"No, we're not good. I need a little more information than that."

"Well, I think it's a little above your pay grade, sheriff." I looked up at Mrs. Davis, and she tossed the file away, so the woman wouldn't get it.

"Yeah?" The sheriff was getting pissed. "Why don't you get on the horn to Nashville and uh, upgrade me?" The woman stepped forward.

"All right, I was hoping to do this the smart way, but you know what? The fun way is always good." Her hand started to glow, almost like it was burning from the inside out. My eyes went wide.

"Deputy, get this woman out of-" He was cut off, with her pressing the burning badge against his face and knocking him on his ass. The sheriff was screaming, and now she was burning up entirely, and pulled something out of him-an organ. Soon everyone was running and screaming, and I just ducked, running as well. She followed me right out, and I turned, backing up.

"Hey, hot stuff, you want to party? Come on, you and me, let's go." I took off down the street, trying to get her as far away from the people as possible. But I stopped in my tracks, when I spotted the guy that Happy had been after-he was some hot stuff, too. I turned, and took off the other way, ducking behind a car as I got to the other side of the street, running into some guy who'd ducked under his car. "Crazy, right?"

"Yeah." I nodded, and checked to make sure she was following me, before I turned back to the guy.

"Watch this." I ran over to the glass window of a diner, and braced myself before I threw myself into it. I groaned as I landed, but managed to get up, recovering quickly because of the adrenaline. My eyes went wide, though, when I saw that the woman had a gun-I ran and ducked behind the counter, slamming into the fridge, and gasped as I did, blocking my face from the breaking glass. I moved behind the counter slowly, and tried to turn to see where she was, but I turned right to her, and she slammed me against the wall, punching me and making me dizzy. I slid across the wall, falling slowly as I did. She grabbed my arm, and twisted both of them behind my back, though, and flipped me over, right onto my back again and onto the counter. I rolled over, standing up again, but she grabbed my handcuffed hands, and slammed me against the wall. I threw my arms around her head, and she grabbed mine, burning it up. But I managed to twist her around, and she stopped, just trying to grab a hold of me. I jumped up onto the counter, and then over to the window leading to the kitchen, dragging her back against the windowsill, and she became smoldering hot, burning the chain holding the cuffs together quickly. I slammed against the oven, and let myself gasp for a second, before I stood up, shaking off the cuffs. I dug the dog tags out of my bra, grabbed the oil sitting there, and kicked it towards the entrance to the kitchen, along with a smoldering cuff to start the fire. The woman examined it, smirking. She was her own kind of fire.

"You're cute, sweetie, but that isn't gonna work."

"I know!" I called back, and went over to the microwave, throwing the dog tags in there and setting a time. "But you just walked right into this one-I've hung out with _way _hotter chicks than you." I pulled the chord for the gas that went to the stove.

"That all you got? A cheap trick, and something close to a cheesy one-liner?"

"Honey, that could be the title to my autobiography." I ducked out the back door, and took off as fast as I could, before the diner exploded. The explosion blew my ears, and I stumbled as I walked away, watching the townsfolk running amuck. I turned, as I heard the water tower break a couple power lines, though, and saw that someone was burning it-someone was burning it down. I turned, and ran over to the Christmas trees-there was a fence on the other side of those trees, and I grabbed a hold of it, bracing myself for impact. I watched as the water tower fell onto a trailer, and held on to the fence, holding my breath as the water crashed all around me, pressing me up against the fence.

I was soon buried underneath all the rubbish, and grunted, as I tried to break myself free. My foot was caught in a rung from the water tower, and I groaned, trying to pull it free. But then I heard Harley's voice, and I looked up, my heart stopping at the sound of it.

"Let me go!" Harley ordered, trying to break free of the guy's grip. The guy mocked him, and carried a chair with him, setting it down across from me. I tried to pull the fence off, and get to him, but it just wouldn't budge. I was stuck.

"Anyway." The man sat down, setting Harley on his knee. "Hey, kid? What would you like for Christmas?" I tried to break free again, almost crying at the stress of it, of what the guy might do to Harley. I could barely handle the thought of it.

"Ellie, I am so sorry." Harley said, and I looked up at him, shaking my head slightly at him.

"No, no, no, what I think he was trying to say was, 'I want my goddamn file.'" I stared at Harley.

"Harley, don't apologize. It's not your fault." I paused, as it came to me-the defense. "Remember what I told you about bullies?" He gasped, and looked up at me, eyes wide. I nodded slightly. Harley took a deep breath, pulled out the weapon, and pressed the top button. It knocked the guy back in his chair, and Harley climbed off. He hesitated, but then I yelled at him. "RUN! RUN, HARLEY, RUN!" He ran. The guy got up, and glared at me. I smirked. "Yeah. You like that, hot wings? See, that's the thing about smart people-we always cover our ass." I held up the repulsor I'd hidden, and fired it at him, sending him flying. I dropped it as soon as it started burning, and winced, staring at my hand.

The adrenaline finally left my system, and I groaned, forcing myself to get up, after shoving everything out of the way. I stumbled over to the guy, and dug the keys out of his pocket, headed back to Main Street.

I went back to the bar, found the file along with my jacket, and then went to his car. Harley found me.

"You're welcome." I turned to look at him, and smiled, ruffling his hair.

"Good job, little man. Now here's what I need you to do-" I knelt in front of him, taking the stetson off his head, and putting it on my own. "My dad should come looking for me, if I'm correct, and I need you to keep an eye on Iron Man for me until he gets here. Tell him that I made him a science swear. He'll know what to do." He gave me sassy eyes. That little brat gave me the sass eyes!

"Why should I?" I raised an eyebrow, and stood up, opening the driver's side door.

"Why? Because A, I saved you first, and B, if you do someone a solid, don't be a yutz. Play it cool, or else you'll come off as grandiose." I turned to toss the file onto the passenger's seat, as well as my jacket. The car would warm me up.

"Unlike you?" I frowned, and looked back at Harley, leaning on the door. "Admit it. You need me. We're connected." This kid had a crush on me. Aw, that's cute!

"What I need, is for you to go home, be with your family, and keep me posted. Stay connected to the telephone, because if I call you, you better pick up." He smiled at me-his face was flushing.

"So, are we kinda like...dating, now?" I laughed at him, shaking my head as I tucked my hair behind my ears.

"I can't have a boyfriend right now. Besides, you're too good for me, you deserve someone better. But Harley, you are now officially one of my best friends." He grinned. "Don't even think about telling anyone! You need to keep your trap shut until you see my dad." I patted his shoulder, and climbed into the vehicle. "Now move over, or I'm gonna run you over." I shut the door, and started up the car, only to roll down the window when he didn't move.

"So now you're just gonna leave me here? Like my dad?" I nodded.

"Yeah, sounds about right."

"My dad gave me a goodbye kiss." I shook my head, pointing a finger at him.

"Don't push it Romeo." I paused, as I got a look at the expression on his face. He was pouting, using his big, sad puppy eyes. "Wait a minute, you're guilt-tripping me, aren't you? Nice. I pulled that one plenty."

"I'm cold." He said it in a childish voice. I pouted at him as he pouted at me, and mocked him.

"Aw, I can tell. You wanna know how I can tell?" I smirked. "'Cause we're connected." I pulled away from the curb, and drove off, rolling up the window.

* * *

I pulled the file out when the road was getting clearer, and looked it over, but I didn't find what I wanted to. I watched the road carefully, moving the steering wheel with my knee slightly.

"Happy." I frowned, though, and turned back to the file, catching the MIA again. I pulled the paper, and when I flipped it over, it read AIM. He wasn't MIA-it was AIM.

I dialed Rhodey's number, and he picked up on the second ring. "Hello?"

"Do you ever have a chick straddling you, you look up, and suddenly she's glowing from the inside out? Kind of a bright orange?"

"Yeah, I get that plenty. Who is this?" I cackled.

"It's me! It's me, Rhodey, it's El, now if I remember correctly, when Dad went missing, you were out looking for him. What, am I not up to par for that standard?" He chuckled.

"Of course you are, sweetie, but I'm a little busy at the moment."

"What? A little knock-and-talk, making some friends in Pakistan or something?"

"How the hell did you know?" I shrugged, smirking.

"It's what you're usually up to when I call. Let's talk about your redesign. It was AIM, right? The re-brand?"

"Yeah." I crumpled up the paper, and tossed it onto the floor of the car, speeding up, and sitting forward.

"I'm gonna find a heavy-duty comm sat right now, I need your log in."

"It's the same as it's always been, WarMachine68." I wrote that down on the file, after taking the cap off a pen I found with my teeth and speaking through it.

"And the password please." Rhodey sighed.

"Ellie, the last time I gave you my password, you practically ruined my work life." I cackled, nodding.

"Yeah, that was awesome. But I'm not gonna do it again, I promise." He remained silent. "Rhodey, c'mon, this is an emergency! You can just change it after I'm done. Scout's honor."

"Fine. It's WARMACHINEROX, with an x, all caps." I bit my lip, fighting off a huge laugh, and wrote that down as well. But I let it go anyway, after putting the cap back on the pen I'd found. "Yeah, all right, laugh it up princess."

"That is _so_ much better than Iron Patriot." The tires screeched as I spun the car around, heading back the other way when I found the comm sat I needed-at a Christmas paegant. "Thanks, Rhodey, love you byyyyyyeee!" I hung up, and tossed the pen aside. I had a work life I had to ruin, again.


End file.
